Referring to the date of the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah said people have rejected what happened on August 5
Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah on Tuesday thanked the people of Jammu and Kashmir and said this is a people’s mandate, as the National Conference-Congress alliance took a decisive lead as votes were counted for the assembly elections.
“I thank the people of J&K, this is a people’s mandate,” he said. He earlier displayed a show of strength while greeting his supporters at his residence in Srinagar.
He said the people have rejected what happened on August 5, referring to the date of the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019. “The people of J&K proved that whatever was done on August 5 is not acceptable to them,” he said.
Asked if his son and NC Vice President Omar Abdullah, will lead the new government in the union territory, Farooq Abdullah said: “Inshallah… Omar Abdullah will be the chief minister.”
#WATCH | JKNC chief Farooq Abdullah displays a show of strength as he greets his supporters, at his residence in Srinagar. As per the latest EC data, the JKNC-Congress alliance has crossed the majority mark in the #JammuKashmirElections2024pic.twitter.com/vdG34WhYVA
— ANI (@ANI) October 8, 2024
Captioned “winning smiles”, Farooq’s daughter Safia Abdullah Khan posted a picture of them on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, as the NC-Congress alliance crossed the majority mark of 46 in the 90-seat assembly.
Winning smiles pic.twitter.com/OIRoc79ZmK— Safia Abdullah Khan (@safiakhan71) October 8, 2024
The alliance is likely to form the government in J&K if poll trends are anything to go by. The combine was ahead in 51 seats while the BJP was leading in 28, as per the Election Commission of India (ECI).
#WATCH | JKNC workers sing and celebrate in Srinagar as the party’s alliance with Congress leads in the #JammuKashmirElections2024. As per the latest EC data, JKNC has won 2 seats and is leading on 41 so far while Congress is leading on 7 seats. pic.twitter.com/iBwisK977J
— ANI (@ANI) October 8, 2024
Supporters of the NC were spotted celebrating in Srinagar and Anantnag, while a Congress leader in Tamil Nadu’s Trichy distributed Kashmiri apples burst crackers with supporters to celebrate the election trends.
#WATCH | National Conference workers and supporters in Anantnag celebrate as the JKNC-Congress alliance has crossed the majority mark in the #JammuKashmirElections2024pic.twitter.com/oiTs8XNb50— ANI (@ANI) October 8, 2024
#WATCH | Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu | Trichy Congress president L Rex distributes Kashmiri apples among the people and busts crackers to celebrate the J&K Assembly election trends. pic.twitter.com/zRGwkoEGkr— ANI (@ANI) October 8, 2024
With the NC ahead of its rivals, Omar Abdullah said there should be no “fiddling” with the mandate of the people in Jammu and Kashmir. “Transparency should be there. Whatever happens should be done in a transparent manner. There should be no fiddling with the peoples’ mandate. If the mandate of the people is against the BJP, then the BJP should not indulge in any ‘jugaad’ (machinations) or something else,” he told reporters in Srinagar. “The Raj Bhavan and the Centre should accept the decision of people the way we did in the Parliamentary polls.”
(With PTI inputs)
